Welsh nationalism

Welsh nationalism is the Welsh expression of nationalism, a movement that became popular in nineteenth-century Europe and gradually became a global phenomenon in the twentieth century. It generally seeks independence for Wales within the United Kingdom or outside it.

Annexation

Throughout the period of conquest the Welsh poets kept alive the dream of independence. In what was known as the Canu brud (= Prophetic poetry), the idea of the coming of a messiah-like figure, known as Y Mab Darogan (= The Son of Destiny), who would not only remove the English yoke but win back the whole of the island of Britain for the British (i.e. Welsh) people. In the Welsh-born Henry VII the Welsh believed that The son of destiny had come and there were no more revolts or talk of revolt – the people of Wales became as loyal as any of the kings' other subjects.

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When that loyalty was put to the test during the reign of Henry VIII and the great changes in religion, the Welsh were kept on side by passing the Acts of Union 1536-1543 in which England annexed Wales, but also removed the repressive measures against the Welsh that had been in place since the revolt of Owain Glyndwr over century earlier. It also gave political representation at the Westminster Parliament for Wales and established a system of justice throughout Wales and applied the Law of England throughout the country. Wales continues to share a legal identity with England to a large degree as the joint entity of England and Wales. The laws also partitioned Wales into thirteen counties and established local government on the English model.

Related Topics:
Henry VIII - Acts of Union 1536-1543 - Owain Glyndwr - England and Wales - Counties

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The laws also had the effect of making English the language to be used for all official purposes. This excluded most native Welsh from any formal office unless they adopted English to some degree or other.

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On the whole the Welsh who had a way of expressing an opinion welcomed these moves and saw them as further proof that Henry VII and his descendants were the long-awaited sons of destiny and that Wales had regained what it had lost at the conquest of 1282. Patriotism, or a non-politicised form of nationalism, remained a strong force in Wales with pride in its language, customs and history common amongst all levels of society.

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